Butterfly from Laos

This stamp depict one species of butterfly, Danaus Genutia.

The butterfly closely resembles the Monarch butterfly (Danaus plexippus) of the Americas.

The wingspan is 75 to 95 mm. Both sexes of the butterfly have tawny wings with veins marked with broad black bands. The female has a pouch on the hindwing. The margins of the wings are black with two rows of white spots.The underside of the wings resembles the upperside but is paler in colouration. The male Common Tiger has a prominent black-and-white spot on the underside of the hindwing.

Distribution and ecology

D. genutia is distributed throughout India, Sri Lanka, Myanmar and extending to South East Asia and Australia (except New Guinea). At least in the South Asia part of its range it is fairly common, locally very common.

This butterfly occurs in scrub jungles, fallowland adjacent to habitation, dry and moist deciduous forests, preferring areas of moderate to heavy rainfall. Also occurs in degraded hill slopes and ridges, both, bare or denuded, and, those covered with secondary growth.

While it is a strong flier, it never flies rapidly or high. It has stronger and faster strokes than the Plain Tiger. The butterfly ranges forth in search of its host and nectar plants.

Save Albatross - Falkland Islands

Albatrosses, of the biological family Diomedeidae, are large seabirds allied to the procellariids, storm-petrels and diving-petrels in the order Procellariiformes (the tubenoses). They range widely in the Southern Ocean and the North Pacific. They are absent from the North Atlantic, although fossil remains show they once occurred there too and occasional vagrant turn up.

Albatrosses are amongst the largest of flying birds, and the great Albatrosses (genus Diomedea) have the largest wingspans of any extant birds. The albatrosses are usually regarded as falling into four genera, but there is disagreement over the number of species.

Albatrosses are highly efficient in the air, using dynamic soaring and slope soaring to cover great distances with little exertion. They feed on squid, fish and krill by either scavenging, surface seizing or diving. Albatrosses are colonial, nesting for the most part on remote oceanic islands, often with several species nesting together. Pair bonds between males and females form over several years, with the use of 'ritualised dances', and will last for the life of the pair.A breeding season will take one year with one egg resulted.

Of the 21 species of albatrosses recognized by the IUCN, 19 are threatened with extinction. Numbers of albatrosses have declined in the past due to harvesting for feathers, but today the albatrosses are threatened by introduced species such as rats and feral cats that attack eggs, chicks and nesting adults; by a serious decline in fish stocks in many regions largely due to overfishing. Long-line fisheries pose the greatest threat, as feeding birds are attracted to the bait , become hooked on the lines, and drown.

Ducks of Indonesia

In year 2000, Indonesian Post issued the miniature stamp sheet  depicted ducks species, Boha wasur in 4,000, Belibis Totol in 5,000, Itik Gunung in 10,000 , Umukia Raja in 15,000, Entok Rimba in 20,000. This issue have high nominal value in rupiahs. Description more detail of above duck species will issue in the next day.

2nd fungi series from North Korea.

This is second issuance from North Korea regard to the fungi stamp series. They also issue in 4 souvenir sheet contain each stamps in one sheet.
Upper direction of stamps depicted Gomphus floccosus, and Morchella esculenta. Meanwhile bottom direction of stamps depicted Cortinarius purpurascens and Oudemansiella platyphylla.

Gomphus floccosus, is a cantharelloid mushroom. The mycological characteristics are orange-capped vase- or trumpet-shaped fruiting structures may reach 20 cm high and 15 cm wide; though mild tasting, they cause gastrointestinal symptoms of nausea, vomiting and diarrhoea when consumed .This species forms ectomycorrhizal relationships with various types of conifer; fruiting bodies may be found in coniferous woodlands across Eastern Asia, from Korea to Pakistan, and in North America, more frequently in the west, in late summer and autumn.

Morchela esculenta is one species of genus Morchella, is a genus of edible mushrooms closely related to anatomically simpler cup fungi. These distinctive mushrooms appear honeycomb-like in that the upper portion is composed of a network of ridges with pits between them. The fruit bodies of the Morchella are highly polymorphic in appearance, exhibiting variations in shape, color and size. Mycological characteristics are Cap is conical or ovate, smooth hymenium with irregular attachment, lacks a stipe, spore print is cream or yellow, ecology is mycorrhizal or saprotrophic, and edible. Morchella species are used in Traditional Chinese Medicine to treat indigestion, phlegm, croup, and shortness of breath. Yellow morels (Morchella esculenta) are more commonly found under deciduous trees rather than conifers.

Cortinarius purpurascens, is one fungi species of the genus Cortinarius, has a beautiful pattern of purple mushroom brown umbrella and the swollen base of the stem. Cortinarius is suspected to be the largest genus of agarics, containing over 2000 different species and found worldwide. A common feature among all species in the genus Cortinarius is that young specimens have a cortina (veil) between the cap and the stem, hence the name. All also have a rusty brown spore print. All mushrooms in this genus form mycorrhizae.

Oudemansiella platyphylla, is one fungi species of the genus Oudemansiella. As the Agaricales mushrooms are often those with the fold on the back of the umbrella which make up sparsely with a thickness of a fold and pack closely without gaps from the fold are small. As the name implies, is a broad fold compared to the thickness of the meat of the umbrella has a unique presence alone there has also been decorated with a gray border. On the other hand, the surface of the fibre pattern umbrella of chic. Ecology is saprophyte and indistinct of edibility because this species shall treated as a poison food poisoning bacteria .This species occurs near the ground dead wood or wood-rotting fungi probably hardwood.

Orang Utan from Indonesia

A local FDC WWF Orang Utan issued by Indonesia on 1989and have special registered on the same date of the FDC issuance date.

The Orang Utans are two dangered species of great ape. These stamps are depict the Bornean Pongo pygmaeus from Borneo Island. There are three species of the Pongo pygmaeus : Pongo pygmaeus pygmaeus, Pongo pygmaeus morio, Pongo pygmaeus wumbii.

The total number of this species estimated to be between 45,000 to 69,000. This data was obtained from 2000 -2003. Since recently are steeply down in most places due to logging and burning, it is forecast that current number are below these figures.

Roses from China - New Zealand

This mini sheet consist of 2 value stamps that shown rose
from China and New Zealand.
These stamps issued by New Zealand collaborated with
China related the International Stamp Expo held in Shanghai 1977.

Jersey Orchid V

This mini sheet
consist of one orchid stamp with high value issued by Jersey Philatelic Bureau.

The orchid as shown is Phragmipedium Jason Fischer, as one of genus Orchyd family.
About 20 species of these orchids are known from SW Mexico, Central and South America. The exact number still being discussed between specialist.

Orchid stamp of Cambogde

One value stamp in souvenir sheet was issued by Cambodge, depict the species Paphiopedilum callosum meanwhile the cover depict the species Dendrobium draconis.

Paphiopedilum callosum is a species of orchid found from Indochina to northwestern Peninsular Malaysia.